Thousands affected by monsoon storm in Yuma County

According to City of Yuma officials, the city fared slightly better than some parts of the county following Tuesday’s storm and additional rain on Thursday, but the uncommon weather did leave its mark on various City departments.

Most affected is Parks and Recreation, which has the following situations:

The Yuma Valley Park is closed until Saturday, Sept. 12 due both to the rain and to planned maintenance. This affects both the soccer/football fields and the playground.

Yuma Boys Baseball League is off for the rest of this week.

Girls Fast Pitch Softball will not play today(Wednesday). They are still on for Thursday’s schedule, weather permitting.

The Bark Park, Yuma’s only off-leash park for dogs, remains open despite the rain. The park also serves as a basin; however, water drained efficiently enough to where a park closure was not warranted.

Other City departments responded to Wednesday’s weather. The Yuma Fire Department had 36 responses between about 4:30 p.m. and 8 p.m. Among these were responses to downed wires, one of which had someone trapped inside the car until power could be secured. YFD had extra staff on hand to assist with the call load.

Then on Wednesday, Fire Station 3, 25th Street and Arizona Avenue, was used to assist APS for use as an ice distribution site for those without power.

City of Yuma Public Works staff members were also busyTuesday, responding to numerous locations of street flooding, two of which required manual pumping operations. Those took place at 16th Street and the East Main Canal, and south of 24th Street near the East Main Canal. Staff also responded to 11 areas where loss of power temporarily affected traffic signals.

According to APS at pproximately 3 p.m. a severe monsoon storm blew through the Yuma area affecting service to approximately 8,000 customers. We are in the process of assessing damage and ensuring public safety as we work to restore service to the area. At this time the total extent of damage is unknown but it is possible some of the areas will remain out of power for up to a 24 hour period. As more information becomes available we will update the site accordingly with outage boundaries and estimated restoration times. We appreciate your patience and understanding as we safely restore your service.

UPDATE: 8:10 p.m.

Somerton School District has cancelled classes for tomorrow due to Tuesday’s weather activity. This was verified by the school superintendent.

The Arizona Department of Public Safety said lane #2 is blocked on Giss Parkway after a semi jackknifed in the roadway. No injuries were reported.

UPDATE: 7:24 P.M.

BREAKING NEWS: YCSO: Avoid traveling on Yuma County roads south of 32nd Street. There are four accidents involving about seven vehicles on Highway 95 between County 14th and Somerton. YCSO wants you to avoid the area until further notice. Also, several power poles are down between County 16th Street and County 19th Street and Avenue 3E to Avenue 1E. Avoid this area as well, until further notice. Most Yuma County roads south of 32nd Street are either partially or completely flooded, according to YCSO. Please avoid the area.

So far no word on any school closures for Wednesday. For the latest information stay with www.kyma.com

###

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN PHOENIX HAS ISSUED A FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR WESTERN YUMA COUNTY IN SOUTHWESTERN ARIZONA UNTIL 9 PM MST

AT 5:58 PM MST…DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A THUNDERSTORM PRODUCING
HEAVY RAIN ACROSS THE WARNED AREA. ESTIMATED TWO TO TWO AND A HALF
INCHES OF RAIN HAVE ALREADY FALLEN IN THE NEARBY AREA. FLASH
FLOODING IS EXPECTED TO BEGIN SHORTLY.

This picture was sent to us by a viewer in Somerton, Ariz. That part of Yuma County experienced the brunt of Tuesday’s storm.This is another picture from a viewer out in Somerton on Tuesday’s storms.Tuesday’s storm caused this tree to land on a home near 16th Street and Avenue 9E in Yuma.